MSGW: The Four Gundams of the Apocalypse
by ShadowHawk
Summary: A new Enemy threatens to destroy everything that holds dear to the Perventers. On hold...
1. Default Chapter

Mobile Suit Gundam Wing:  
  
The Four Gundams of the Apocalypse  
  
Chapter 1: The Horsemen Cometh  
  
*All copyrights belong to their respective owners.  
  
Campbell Lane (voice) .... Narrator  
  
MAIN CHARACTERS (GOOD)  
  
Mark Hildreth (I) (voice) .... Heero Yuy  
  
Scott McNeil (I) (voice) .... Duo Maxwell  
  
Kirby Morrow (voice) .... Trowa Barton  
  
Brad Swaile (voice) .... Quatre Rabera Winner  
  
Ted Cole (voice) .... Chang Wufei  
  
MAIN CHARACTERS (BAD)  
  
Eminem (voice) .... Malcolm Meredith / The First Horseman - Conquest  
  
Adrian Paul (voice) .... Jeffery Jameson / The Second Horseman - War  
  
Eliza Dushku (voice) .... Lucia Lynn / The Third Horseman - Famine  
  
Willem Dafoe (voice) .... Luther Durden / The Fourth Horseman - Death  
  
SUPPORTING CHARACTERS (GOOD)  
  
Saffron Henderson (voice) .... Lucrezia Noin  
  
Brian Drummond (voice) .... Milliardo Peacecraft / Zechs Marquise  
  
Lisa Ann Beley (voice) .... Relena Darlian / Relena Peacecraft  
  
Monica Gemmer (voice) .... Catherine Bloom  
  
Chantal Strand (voice) .. Mariemeia Khushrenada  
  
Enuka Okuma (voice) .. Lady Une  
  
Cathy Weseluck (voice) .... Dorothy Catalonia  
  
Moneca Stori (voice) .... Sally Poe  
  
Ward Perry (voice) .... Howard  
  
"And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the Earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the bests of the Earth."  
  
Revelations 6:8  
  
December 30, A.C. 196  
  
Noin set the flower down on one of the graves and standing up once more crossed herself. She had always come to this place ever since that Christmas Eve in A.C. 195 when Trieze Kushrinada had died in space. She would always bring flowers to the grave of Trieze, but she would bring none for her beloved, Zechs Marquise. Standing next to Noin as she stood up was Dorothy Catalonia who had just recently realized the follies of war.  
  
"Noin... why is it that you don't bring anything for Milliard's grave?" asked Dorothy as she stared in curiosity at Noin.  
  
"It's not necessary."  
  
"Eh?" she asked dubiously.  
  
"He's out there somewhere."  
  
"True..." Dorothy giggled faintly as she answered.  
  
"What about Relena?"  
  
"She's even busier than before, flying hither and yon." Noin smiled sadly. Noin was still a guardian of the Sank Kingdom, but its ruler, Relena, wasn't there. "She's been so busy these months with the Mars Terra-forming project."  
  
"When's phase one supposed to start?" asked Dorothy.  
  
"It should be launching in four hours," Noin said as she stared up into the sky.  
  
"Did you tell Relena about...." Noin bowed her head. "No, I didn't.  
  
That's his prerogative, I'll understand if he chooses not to."  
  
"I suppose so."  
  
Dorothy smiled and stared up into the skies with Noin.  
  
***  
  
"Vice Foreign Minister Darlian!" A voice called out to Relena as she headed towards the Mars Terra-forming Project Launch ceremony, which had already started. The L2 Colony representative, Ted Narita, hurried over towards her. He seemed surprised to see her dressed in a pale pink colored suit.  
  
"Is something wrong?" Relena asked  
  
Ted closed his mouth at her question.  
  
"It's just that... that suit looks incredibly like the one Colonel Une wore when I first met her. Er... She's not a colonel anymore is she - the leader of the Earth Sphere... right?" Relena smiled faintly at Ted. "I see... Does it not suit me?"  
  
"Oh no! It looks very good on you!" He said that very seriously, and then quickly changed the subject.  
  
"Actually... someone asked me to deliver something to you today..."  
  
"To me? Who?"  
  
"I'm sorry, I don't know."  
  
"I see... I understand. I'll accept it." She took the letter that he pulled out, and after murmuring her thanks Ted bowed to her. She had been busy these many months working on the Mars Terra-forming Project. Living in space was a precarious thing, and she hoped that this would bolster their spirits. That had been one of the reasons why the colonists had turned to arms in the first place. That was why creating a solid, habitable world was such an important goal.  
  
However, it wasn't just a matter of technology, it was also incredibly expensive. The Winners and the Dragon clan were helping with the latter. Their efforts had been rewarded; phase one was to start today. The first phase of the project would take 10 years to finish. The plan was to alter the orbit and surface of the planet, bringing it closer to the earth. After that, plants would be brought in. And finally, after fifty years, man would be able to live there without the need for masks.  
  
Compared to the two centuries of suffering in the colonies, this amount of time would be a pittance. Relena perused the letter as she walked. Her face immediately paled and she broke into a run.  
  
"We who know nothing but how to fight can't immediately adapt to this New World. It may be that the only way I can go on living is in battle. The red planet awaits us. I plan to lose myself in this new fight. But this is not a fight to kill... but rather a fight to stay alive. I will survive."  
  
That was all that was written. There was no signature. But just reading it, she knew whom it was from. "Heero!" She headed towards the ceremony, surely the countdown had started. After the fight, Heero had never once appeared before her. No....it wasn't just Heero, she hadn't seen Quatre of the Winner family or Wufei of the Dragon Clan. She would have never have imagined that this was the reason. Relena who had dashed towards the ceremony found her progress blocked. Down below, she could see the people who were to depart on phase one walking towards the ship. At the end of the line were five boys. She pulled herself against the fence and called to those down below.  
  
"Heero!" She called  
  
Her voice penetrated past the cheerful music of the ceremony. Four boys and Heero, the last in line, turned around and looked up. Relena then took the letter and ripped it in half.  
  
"Next time, deliver it in person!" she shouted.  
  
Heero smiled and spoke something softly  
  
"Wait for me." She was sure that was what he had mouthed.  
  
Duo waved.  
  
Trowa nodded.  
  
Quatre laughed.  
  
Wufei bowed.  
  
And the five entered the shuttle without looking back.  
  
"I'll be waiting for you, Heero." She said, "I'll believe in you... no matter how long..."  
  
She gently held the letter against her as she watched the final countdown begin.  
  
Time had truly passed quickly since the Christmas Eve when the tyrannical eight-year-old Mariemaia Kushrinada had declared war. It seems even longer to the events of when the Space Battleship Libra was falling to Earth. Humanity had come so close to killing each other completely. Yet, the five boys with rebellious wings of Gundanium had thwarted all of these events. These shooting starts that were commonly known as the Gundam Pilots. There was Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton, Quatre Raberba Winner and Wufei Chang. After these events that happened in the years A.C. 195 and 196 each had taken their won separate ways.  
  
Duo Maxwell went on to manage his own scrap-pile with his lady friend named Hilde Schbeiker. Duo felt that this was the best way for him to make a living. He knew a lot about machinery and how each of them would work with the right parts. With the Alliance, Oz, and Romafeller gone, all of their mobile suit parts are lying around waiting to be used for a better purpose.  
  
After the collapse of the Alliance, Oz and Romafeller, the World Nation was established. With this, a small organization was needed to protect the peace. This organization was called "Perventer", and it was there that Wufei Change had found his place. He had always felt that when peace would be achieved his warrior like ways would be discarded. With no battles to fight, he would simply be a useless weapon. That was until the offer came for him to be in Perventer. He had felt that he may not be a warrior anymore but at least he can use his skills for someone.  
  
The traveling circus had always welcomed the silent Trowa Barton. More specifically, Catherine Bloom had always welcomed Trowa back to the circus. She always kept an eye on Trowa as if she were his big sister.  
  
While Catherine kept her "big sister eye" on Trowa, he just continued to do his acrobat tricks for this circus.  
  
Making people happy for an hour or more was preferable to killing.  
  
Quatre Raberba Winner simply did was he had always planned to do, return to work at his family business. The Winner family had a lot of hands, both literal and metaphorical, in different resources. Quatre did in fact have 24 sisters, each of them controlling one resource satellite that belonged to the Winner family. His sisters would make sure that they're running fine while Quatre simply ran the business.  
  
And Heero Yuy.? Heero is a very different story unto himself. He had always lived his life as a nomad, going from place to place and living from day to day. Never having exact plans of where to stay or what to do unless instructed to him. That was why he was the perfect soldier, he could follow his orders down to the final detail.  
  
In the time of peace, there was no use for a perfect soldier anymore. So in Heero Yuy's words, he would go  
  
"wherever his mind would take him".  
  
All of the Gundam pilots went their separate ways, but what of their mobile suits? All of the Gundam mobile suits had been scattered across the globe and in space. The Wing Gundam, the very first Gundam mobile suit used by Heero Yuy lay somewhere within the widespread continent of Asia. It could be anywhere from the mountainous regions of Tibet, the snowy hills of Russia, or it could be in one of the islands of Japan. The Heavyarms lay somewhere in Europe, while the Sandrock was in the Middle East. The rest of the Gundams were in space; the Gundam DeathScythe Hell remained in the company of Duo Maxwell, well hidden on Colony L-2. The Altron was somewhere on the L-5 Colony. As a matter of fact it's a miracle that the L-5 colony survived, there were plans by the Dragon Clan to self detonate the colony. Though thanks to the efforts of Wufei Chang the Colony was spared. The last Gundam mobile suit and the most dangerous weapon of all, the Wing Zero was on Colony L-4. Though the only Gundam mobile suit that was never found was the suit built by Treize Kushrinada, The Gundam Epyon.  
  
It is said that the price of freedom and peace is eternal vigilance. None of the Gundam pilots knew this, but soon they will.  
  
***  
  
October 13, A.C. 199  
  
On Colony L-1, there are a number of different colleges. Each of them was varying in degrees of education. Some of them are general admission, while there are some who were very similar to that of the Ivy League colleges down on the Earth Sphere. This particular college catered to the rich, the high class, or royalty. This was Manchester University. The university itself was enormous, it had a track for horses as well as their stables, several tennis courts, a golf course, not to mention the numerous buildings that dealt in different sections of education.  
  
The horses were out on the track on this particular day. They were running the tracks; some were galloping, trotting and eloping. Except there were two horse-riders that were catching a lot of attention from riders and onlookers alike.  
  
"'Ere goes" Jeffery smiled as he prepped his horse for the jumps.  
  
Jeffery Jameson was one of the horse-riders that were catching the attention. Jeffery was a young man of 27 years that when he was off of his high horse he would be six feet tall. He was wearing the prestigious riding clothes, the red coat with tails, balloon pants and high black boots. He looked pretty puffed up with those kinds of clothes but under them he was slightly muscular. He had dirty brown hair, hazel eyes, a goatee accompanied with a partial mustache. Most of the women students at Manchester University Jeffery had the looks of a Hollywood movie star. Coupling his good looks was his Scottish accent, which many of the women found extremely sexy.  
  
Coming up behind Jeffery on another horse was a friend of his, a woman named Lucia Lynn who wore the same kind of riding clothes that Jeffery had but more feminine. She was 21 years old and stood at five feet 8 inches tall with her brunet hair coming down to her back. Usually it would just hang out but since she was riding she had it in a long ponytail. She watched Jeffery take the reigns of his horse with her hazel eyes and hoped that Jeffery wouldn't make an ass of himself. She too, like Jeffery was very attractive and with her Australian accent it intensified it even more.  
  
She looked down the track and saw three sets of jumps that Jeffery was about to make. She came up along side of him and looked at him with a smile on her fair skinned face and voiced her hope.  
  
"Try not to make an ass of yourself, Jeffery." She said concerned.  
  
"Oi," Jeffery groaned, "quit acting like me mother." Jeffery had that Scottish grit sense of humor, where whatever he says may sound cruel but its his own kind of fun. He grabbed the reigns of the horse and sped off down the track and jumped over the first two jumps. Then came the last hurdle, this time Jeffery took the reigns of the horse and pulled hard back which sent the horse jumping high above the hurdle. He came back down in once piece and circled around back to the beginning of the track. As he stopped he heard the clapping and cheering from the ladies who watched from behind the fence.  
  
"My turn" Lucia smiled as she trotted down the track through the first hurdle. As she came up to the second one she stood on the horses back as she made it through the final two jumps. Each time the horse jumped under her feet she never flinched or made any sign of fear as she came around to her friend Jeffery. She stopped and sat back down on the horse. This time there was even more clapping from the small audience at the fence, even Jeffery was impressed with his friends' skills.  
  
As Jeffery and Lucia were basking in their small popularity they caught the disapproving eyes of her co-eds, Malcolm Meredith and Luther Durden.  
  
Malcolm Meredith was wearing the school uniform that is worn by most of the students at Manchester University. The same tweed jacket with the school crest on the left breast. Malcolm himself was a man of 24 years and standing over the fence at 6 foot 1 inch tall. His strongly built body could be seen in the contours of his shoulders. His bleach blond hair and pale blue eyes blended finely into his fair skin that had no facial hair.  
  
Next to Malcolm was the very shady Luther Durden, who was shorter than Malcolm was with his 5 foot 8 inch tall scrawny build and posture. Flowing past his eyes and over his school jacket was his long messy black hair. From behind the long black hair he looked disapprovingly at Jeffery and Lucia with one brown eye and the other no pigment so that it looks like his eye is pure white.  
  
Both Jeffery and Lucia knew that they had done wrong. They dismounted their horses and lead them back to the stables. As they came back they heard their small crowd gossiping about recent events.  
  
"Did you hear?" One of them said, "There have been numerous attacks on this colony."  
  
"Yeah, I heard about it!" Another voice said, "I heard that there were four suits and they looked like Gundams."  
  
"You must have been stoned, there are no Gundams anymore. They were all destroyed."  
  
"Hey, chill out! I'm just telling you what I heard."  
  
Jeffery Jameson, Lucia Lynn, Malcolm Meredith, and Luther Durden knew the truth of these attacks. Yet, their lips were sealed about those events, secrecy was of the utmost importance.  
  
Later, In a small janitor's closet in the theology building of Manchester University, Jeffery, Lucia, Malcolm and Luther were having a small meeting.  
  
The janitors closet was small but not cramped, the four of them did have enough elbow room. Under the single bulb lamp the meeting had begun.  
  
Malcolm had removed his tie and unbuttoned his dress shirt. He opened it to show a tattoo on his left breast that read, "Victoria".  
  
"Conquest" He said in a roll call tone. Jeffery did the same thing except his tattoo read the word, "Bullumi"  
  
"War" he stated  
  
Next was Lucia, she unbuttoned her dress shirt and opened it. She had the same tattoo written across her left breast but was placed in an area that was covered by her bra. She pulled it down just enough to show the word, "Famesis". "Famine" She said.  
  
Luther had his shirt open already and upon his breast was the word, "Morte".  
  
"And I, Death." He said, "We are the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse."  
  
"Apocalypse now." The group said in unison and began to button their shirts back up. Luther was looking at Jeffery and Lucia with a very stern face like a disapproving father. His brown and albino eye darted between the two of them like slowly moving pendulums.  
  
"What were you two doing showing off like that?" Luther asked calmly yet demandingly.  
  
Jeffery and Lucia were terrified, both their knees knocked together and their eyes were wide waiting for whatever punishment Luther was going to give them. Jeffery tried to speak but his throat was so dry from fear that it was hard to get his explanation out. Lucia was having the same problem she knew the kind of atrocities that Luther was capable of and she didn't want to be his victim. "We're sorry, Death." Jeffery apologized, "we got carried away."  
  
"It's no excuse, Conquest!" Luther snapped, "You and Famine must understand that we can't be discovered. All of you know that secrecy is of the utmost importance. If anyone was to discover our plans then it's all over for all of us. The will of God will not be carried out."  
  
Jeffery and Lucia bowed their heads to Luther, "We're sorry, Death." They said together.  
  
"Now then." Luther smiled like Hannibal Lecter; "We have a mission. I have two hits, but I'm going to go after them myself."  
  
"Why can't we go with you, Death?" Jeffery asked.  
  
"I have to make an appearance as the Angel of Death."  
  
***  
  
At the same time on Earth, Lady Une and Mariemea Kushrinada were coming to the graveyard in the Sank Kingdom to pay their respects to a fallen man; Trieze Kushrinada. The graveyard looked out towards the sparkling blue ocean. Lady Une and Mariemaia looked down at the grave marked Treize with the ocean sparkling in the background.  
  
As Lady Une lay down a batch of yellow roses upon Treize's grave, a dark cloud passed overhead. It covered the sun sending the graveyard, Lady Une and Mariemea into shadow. Lady Une stood up looking at the cloud thinking that perhaps the heavens too were mourning for Trieze. For he was the one who steered the course of the world to peace and using the Gundams as his tools.  
  
Then Lady Une looked back to the ground and saw a cloud of smoke curling up from the ground. It floated slowly up but it had a movement to it that suggested someone or something was controlling it. As if the smoke itself was a creature coming from the bowels of the Earth to do whatever evil it wished. It grew bigger and bigger around the graves and up the height of both Mariemaia and Lady Une. The smoke smelled stale, poisonous, and filled with ash. It was the same smell that  
  
Lady Une knew when forests or a building was burning. It inflamed her nostrils and her eyes to even smell it let alone breath it in.  
  
She tried to cover he mouth as well as Mariemaia's, then through her tearful burning eyes from the smoke she saw a dark figure moving through the smoke.  
  
It was dark, slow moving, it crept in the same fashion that the smoke moved from the Earth. Then the figure spoke its voice slow, raspy, and purely evil.  
  
"Lady Une." the dark figure rasped,  
  
"Death.awaits you.time.to pay.for you're.sins."  
  
Lady Une wanted to move away from the creeping evil, but she felt frozen in her footsteps. The figure drew closer, and even with her eyes watering, her nostrils stinging and her lungs coughing she wanted to know what this figure was. It came in closer and she was looking at a figure dressed in a flowing black robe. A hood covered the face of this creature, within the hood it was dark but with the little light from the sky Lady Une saw a skull within it. Her heart stopped as she looked into the hood of the foul thing. She watched still frozen from the absolute fear that overtook her. The figure of death pulled his hand out its robe, its hand covered in metal plates coming to its fingers in the shape of claws. In its metal hand was a flashlight shaped rod, it raised its arms and the rod extended to a staff sized rod. At one end of the rod was an odd device that Lady Une had a faint memory of. She remembered the Gundam DeathScythe Hell having something like that; it would emit a beam for its weapon. From that long thin metal rod that the figure of death held in its grip a shinning red beam came curving outward like a claw. The smoke made intensified the redness of the beam scythe that this figure of death held in its hands. The foul creature raised the scythe above its head.  
  
Lady Une held Mariemaia closer to her as they both watched the creature about to make its fatal blow from the weapon it held in its hand.  
  
"Lady Une!" A voice called from the distance  
  
The creature made a short sharp screech as it lowered its weapon and looked to where the voice was coming from. A second later the beam of its weapon pulled back into the thin metal rod and the rod itself turned back into a flashlight sized rod. Then the creature turned around and jumped from grave to grave like a grasshopper from plant to plant. With the creature gone, the foul smelling and stinging smoke faded with it.  
  
Lady Une looked and saw her bodyguards coming to her aid.  
  
"Are you alright, Lady Une?" One of them asked  
  
"Call Perventer." Lady Une stated,  
  
"There's been an assassination attempt on me."  
  
***  
  
Above the Earth upon the populated moon life was going on peacefully and prosperously not knowing of the evil that was dwelling not more than a few miles away. For there was the abandoned mobile doll factory. During the year of A.C. 195 a member of the Romafeller foundation, Chief Engineer Tuberov, used this place to construct his "invincible mobile dolls". An army of machines with no souls or pilots, but simply mobile suits controlled by computers. It was within the bowels of this disused place that the Four Horsemen had gathered.  
  
It was at the edge of the assembly line where previously half-built mobile dolls would roll by waiting to be completed. Three of the four horsemen knelt to the assembly line where the fourth horseman, Death, stood.  
  
"The assassination attempt has failed!" He shouted, "but we will kill Lady Une. We must go ahead with our plans."  
  
"Apocalypse now!" The Horsemen said in unison.  
  
Luther reached to his side and took out a red leather bound book as thick as mathematics textbook. Embossed on the cover of this book was a golden hourglass with a cross on one side and the Star of David on the other. This was "God's Textbook" and this was the gospel of the Four Horseman of the Apocalypse. Luther began to read from it.  
  
"And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, "Come and see". And I saw, and behold a white horse, and he that sat on him had a bow, and a crown was given unto him and he went forth conquering and to conquer." Luther closed the book, "We must open the first seal. Famine, I have an assignment for you."  
  
Lucia stood up and came forward the assembly line to her master, "Yes, Death." She said.  
  
Luther knelt down to whisper his instructions to Lucia, "You are to infiltrate the Circus that is currently performing on Colony L-3. There's a certain Gundam pilot there and you are to get info on the Whereabouts of Perventer Headquarters. Use whatever means necessary, and I do mean any means."  
  
"Who's the victim?" She asked  
  
Luther reached into his pocket and pulled out a wallet-sized photograph and handed it slowly to Lucia. She looked at the photograph and nodded to Luther.  
  
"I won't fail you, Death." She said  
  
  
  
To be continued. 


	2. The Silencer's Seduction

Gundam Wing:  
  
The Four Gundams of the Apocalypse  
  
Chapter 2: The Silencer's Seduction  
  
*All copyrights belong to their respective owners.  
  
On Colony L-2, the circus had come to town. In one of the empty spaces of the colony, the big top tent stripped red and white was set up. Around it were the other tents, caravans, and animal cages.  
  
The people of the colony had come to see the show. Everyone from parents with children and fun seekers. They came to see the animals, the magicians, and their most prized exhibit. This was the famous tumbler and flying acrobat named Trowa Barton. This is the person that the people came to see the most. They crowded around the Big Top to get seats to see the show. This would surely be the greatest show on the Colony.  
  
Inside the people found their seats looking down to the center where the show was set. The three rings, as well as the high wire and in the center, the Ring Master came out to introduce the show. Behind him at one of the circus performers entrance, Catherine Bloom was catching a glimpse of the audience.  
  
"Wow!" She whispered with silent glee and turned to Trowa, "It's a full house tonight, Trowa. Let's give them the best show they've ever seen!"  
  
Trowa sat upon one of the crates, already dressed in his clown clothes. His green extra baggy pants, suspended over his white shirt, and his half clown mask. He showed no excitement about the show, he simply sat waiting.  
  
Catherine set her fists at her sides, "Some things really don't change, do they?"  
  
Trowa didn't answer her question.  
  
Beyond the performers entrance the show had already begun. The animals, magicians, and clowns were parading their trade and tricks. Each brought smiles to every man, woman and child sitting in the stands. There was one woman who smiled at the show she saw. Lucia Lynn, who came dressed in her black dressed while over it she wore a red cloak that matched her red beret. She had to remind herself that she was here on a mission not to have a good time, but she couldn't help it. She had been raised by the finest family in Australia, and never got the opportunity to go to the circus as a child. She now saw what she had missed out on as a child.  
  
The comedy part of the show ended and then it was time for more daring acts. The animals, clowns and magicians cleared the stage allowing the Ring Master to announce the next act. "Ladies and Gentleman!" He called, "Boys and girls of all ages! Now is the time for our prize act, the young and talented acrobat, Trowa Barton!"  
  
From behind the curtain of the performers entrance came a lion that galloped around the ring of the circus. ON its back standing on one hand was Trowa Barton. As he made his entrance the audience cheered and screamed loudly for their favorite star. Trowa meanwhile, looked at the smiling faces of his audience, but his good eye caught the sight of one woman who was staring at him. She didn't applaud, nor did she smile or wave.  
  
She just sat there staring at Trowa as if fixated on him. Keeping his balance on the Lion, Trowa tried to keep his eye on the woman in the red cloak. There was only one other person that had that look. Heero Yuy, who would have that look before he killed.  
  
The woman was soon lost from Trowa's range of vision and so he went one with the rest of his act with the woman in red at the back of his mind. The thought kept nudging and nagging at him like a rambunctious child. Who was she? And why did she have that look at him? Those same questions plagued his mind during the most deadly act. It was during Catherine's knife throwing act. During this act, she would throw knives at Trowa while he stood against a board. The object was for Catherine to miss while she was blindfolded. Of course, Trowa had no fear because he had already faced death several times and he had trust in Catherine's talents. Yet, those weren't' the only things on his mind, the one thought that kept circling in his mind was the woman in red.  
  
His thoughts were around her so much that he hadn't noticed that Catherine had thrown the last knife.  
  
The performers took a bow and the circus performance was over for the night.  
  
***  
  
On Earth, there was a grand celebration of music artists from around the Earth Sphere and from the Colonies. They had gathered at one of the grandest of theaters that the city of Hollywood could offer. Each artist came in his or her car, they would step out onto the red carpet and would be greeted by a barrage of flash bulbs and reporters before reaching the door of the theater. One of these artists was the young Brittany Spears, the young, sexy, and "virgin" singer. She came out smiling to her fans as well as the flashing cameras. She posed for them as she walked down the red carpet in a golden shimmering dress showing off her bare shoulders and accenting her young curves.  
  
As she walked down the red carpet, she looked to the cameras and saw someone shoving through the reporters. The person shoving through finally came out, but it wasn't a reporter. It was a boy that Brittany estimated to be about 19 years old, who had brownish hair and cobalt blue eyes. He wore only a light pair of pants, a green tank top and a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. The thing that caught Brittany's eye about this boy was that he showed no interest in her. Somehow she felt a little flustered by that, then she watched the boy go under the ropes and across the red carpet taking no notice of anyone. He simply wanted to cross.  
  
The young "virgin" singer was intrigued by this boy, so before she lost sight of him she walked up to him and decided to get his attention. She didn't know that the boy was the Gundam pilot, Heero Yuy, the Perfect Soldier.  
  
"Excuse me." She said  
  
Heero turned to look at Brittany with his cold cobalt blue eyes, the very look sent shivers through Brittany. She reached into her purse and pulled out a piece of paper. She handed it to the Perfect Soldier. Heero took it and looked to find that it was a hotel name, room number as well as the hotels phone number. Puzzled by this, Heero looked back at Brittany Spears to get some kind of conformation as to what she was doing.  
  
"I'd like to talk to you later on tonight." She said  
  
Heero, if he were asked, probably would say that he had never heard of Brittany Spears and wouldn't even care who she was. All Heero saw was a young girl trying to hit on him. He suddenly remembered reading something in the newspaper about a sexy young singer who proclaimed that she would remain a virgin until married. He remembered that girls' name was Brittany Spears and with that in mind he looked at the girl from head to toe.  
  
"A virgin?" Heero scoffed silently, "yeah, right."  
  
"I would really like you to come and see me." Brittany repeated  
  
Heero didn't know that there were nearly a hundred cameras on him and Brittany.  
  
That was until he took the piece of paper and held it in front of Brittany's face and tore it in half. He allowed the pieces to flutter down to the ground as the speed of the flash bulbs grew sporadically. All the photographers were stunned at this boy and so was Brittany who stared at the boy in shock. She was on the verge of tears at the cruelty the boy had shown, but she felt a warm finger reach up to her eye. She looked and found the boy was brushing away one of her tears. She smiled thinking that he had some interest in her. Then she heard his voice.  
  
"My heart belongs to another." Heero said as he walked off cameras flashing behind him as he walked off. And on Brittany who stood there on the red carpet just flabbergasted at what just happened. She had been able to tease men with her body and sensuous songs about lust in the most primitive forms, yet she couldn't' reach this one boy.  
  
As Heero Yuy walked off something in his pocket began to vibrate; it was his cell phone. He could never stand those annoying beeping sounds cell phones make. So, for his own he set it to vibrate. He pressed "receive" to hear who was calling him.  
  
"This is Heero Yuy." He said.  
  
"Heero, this is Lady Une." The voice on the phone said, "I'm calling an emergency meeting of Preventer. Come to Colony L-4 immediately."  
  
"Roger" Heero said, "I'm on my way."  
  
***  
  
A few hours later on Colony L-4, at the Preventer Headquarters, Lady Une gathered all the Preventer officers to an emergency meeting. There was Noin, otherwise known as Preventer Water, Sally Po, known as Preventer Earth as well as Wufei Change, Duo Maxwell, Heero Yuy and Quatre Raberba Winner.  
  
"Hey, where's Trowa?" Duo asked  
  
"Trowa reported that he's been detained with job matters." Lady Une stated, "I've called this meeting because there has just been an assassination attempt on my life. I've given a written report which, all of you should have read."  
  
"Whoever has attempted this," Wufei spoke out "has an over-the-top flare for dramatics, did this assassin say anything to you?"  
  
"As I have stated in my report" Lady Une rebounded, "The assassin stated, death awaits you, time to pay for your sins."  
  
"Have any suspects been captured?" Heero asked, "Or has anyone been found that could still hold a grudge against you?"  
  
"No." Lady Une answered, "There's something else. Colony L-3 has reported mobile suit attacks by unknown mobile suits."  
  
Heero asked one of the most basic questions of mobile suit attacks, "Have their characteristics or weapons been identified?"  
  
"No," Lady Une answered, "By the time any Preventer operatives arrived on the scene, there was no sign of the suits, nor was there a single clue that could be tested. The only clues we could find was the actual damage done." She picked up the file folder and read the report made by the Preventer operatives, "Crops have been devastated beyond care and livestock have all but a fraction died. Several buildings have been sliced as if by an enormous blade. While other buildings are riddled with bullet holes. Last of all there were people that were dead upon arrival of the medical teams. All of the victims had been infected with a chemical poison completely unknown by all standards of testing. So far, no motive, or suspects have been made or identified."  
  
Silence came over the members of Preventer and the Gundams alike. None of them had ever heard of such vile and cowardly acts.  
  
"Oh my God." Sally Po whispered as she covered her mouth, "I thought the war was over."  
  
"The price of freedom is eternal vigilance." Wufei said arrogantly  
  
"How can you be co calm?" Noin asked in protest  
  
Before Wufei could give some kind of chauvinistic answer, Lady Une addressed the more important issue.  
  
"First of all, we have to figure out who is trying to kill me, who attacked the Colonies, and most of all, why?"  
  
All who attended the meeting agreed.  
  
***  
  
Back at the circus on Colony L-2, Trowa had his own worries. His mind circled around and around that woman who was at the show. Trowa was one who was not easily scared or worried but it was that look. That stare made him feel cold inside his well-heated caravan. He sat staring into his still steaming cup of coffee, still thinking about that woman.  
  
"Is she after me?" He asked himself, "but why?"  
  
Trowa had sipped his coffee, finding out how cold it got in his time of thought.  
  
He went to the sink and got rid of his cold coffee. As he cleaned his cup he had the urge to go outside. He would have made an excuse such as to clear his mind.  
  
He walked out of his caravan to breathe the air. For some technical reason the air inside a colony is always cleaner. Trowa looked up and saw that it was already night in the colony with its artificial lights turned down. He breathed in the colony air and he heard footsteps. He turned slowly to where the footsteps were coming from, and he found her: the woman in the red cloak. From the lights of the streets and the light coming from inside Trowa's caravan he could see the details of this woman much more clearly.  
  
He saw that she had brunet hair flowing past her shoulders and down her back. She stared at Trowa in an odd fashion with green eyes, it was the same shade of green as Trowa's. As this woman came closer Trowa simply stood his ground and remained silent.  
  
"Aren't you going to say anything?" The woman asked  
  
"What would you have me say?" Trowa asked coldly  
  
"For a start you could have asked who I was."  
  
Trowa sill said nothing; his soldier instincts told him that this woman could be trouble.  
  
"Well, I'll introduce myself then." The woman in red smiled, "My name is Lucia Lynn, what's your name?"  
  
"Call me Trowa, Trowa Barton."  
  
There was a brief moment of silence until Trowa asked the question.  
  
"I saw you at the show today." He said, "You were staring at me, why?"  
  
Lucia stepped closer, she came within arms reach of Trowa, "Because," she said,  
  
"I'm interested in you." She brought up her hand to her lips and opened it. There was nothing there that Trowa saw but Lucia blew into her palm. A faint pink dust flew out of her hand and into Trowa's face. He began breathing it in, the dust smelled like freshly cut roses and vanilla to him. All of his worries and concerns faded away. He looked back at Lucia and felt a great stirring in his loins like he never felt before.  
  
"Are you going to invite me into your caravan?" She asked  
  
"Yes." Trowa said as he gently lead Lucia by the hand to his caravan. It was certainly a good thing that Trowa and Catherine had different caravans. Not only that but Trowa had a good idea of how late it was, so by now Catherine would have gone to bed. If it weren't' for those two facts playing in Trowa's favor, Catherine wouldn't have allowed Lucia to come near her "brother".  
  
Trowa brought Lucia into his caravan, he closed the door, shut all the drapes and then fell back onto his bed admiring Lucia from where he sat.  
  
Lucia on the other hand had different plans in mind. She came over to Trowa and positioned herself on Trowa's lap like a very experienced lap dancer. She placed her lips on Trowa's, he not only felt the stirring in his loins but he invited it. It was something Trowa knew about but never truly experienced.  
  
Lucia uncoupled her red cloak, tossed it aside and threw her beret to the floor. As the cloak and beret hit the floor she went back to kissing Trowa. Her hands groped Trowa's body through his clothes and Trowa reciprocated in groping Lucia. Until neither one could stand it anymore and they peeled each other's clothes off. Lucia pulled Trowa's long sleeve shirt and Trowa unbuttoned Lucia's dress. The two did it so frantically that they didn't care if their clothes got just a little torn. The two lovers held each other in their nakedness. And engaged in an act of love so sweet both could taste it.  
  
Later as the two lay in Trowa's bed and the sweat rubbing off onto the sheets, Lucia decided to put the downhill part of her plan into action. She brought her lips to Trowa's ear.  
  
"Trowa Barton." She whispered, "you will hear only my voice and obey my commands. Do you understand?"  
  
"Yes." Trowa said while still in his unconscious sleep.  
  
"Where is the headquarters of Preventer?" Lucia asked  
  
"Colony L-4 across the street from the Winner Family building."  
  
"Where is Lady Une's office?"  
  
"Third floor.room 357."  
  
"Good, Trowa. Now, when I count down from ten to zero you will go back to sleep.  
  
When you wake up, you will remember nothing about our night or us together.  
  
Understand?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Good. Ten.nine.eight.seven.six.five.four.three.two.one.zero."  
  
Trowa went lazily back to sleep while Lucia got dressed and walked out of the caravan and into the night. Her mission had been done, thanks the pheromone dust she had.  
  
After all Lucia Lynn used to be a nurse and she was also an expert in botany and chemical engineering. That was how she easily seduced the Silencer, Trowa Barton. The dust can also be used like a truth serum, which is why Trowa answered so easily. Then to top it off, the dust can also isolate memories. Thus the victim remembers nothing, hence if the victim remembers nothing.it never happened.  
  
The next day Trowa awakened with a very enormous splitting headache. He sat up in bed, then feeling the sheets against his skin he found out that he had slept naked. But why? He had never done anything like that before. His vision cleared and in his doorway was his "big sister", Catherine. She was wearing her outfit for her knife-throwing act. She looked at Trowa sternly like a disappointed parent. Trowa wasn't exactly prepared for his sisters disapproval. Come to think of it, he didn't know why she was looking at him in such a way.  
  
"Good afternoon, Trowa." Catherine said sarcastically, "Sleep well with that floozy?"  
  
"Who?" Trowa groaned, rubbing his eyes.  
  
"Don't give me that, Trowa." Catherine huffed, "That girl in red you brought in here last night. I saw you close the drapes and I watched this whole trailer rock around so much that it would have probably tipped over. So, who was she, Trowa?"  
  
"I can't remember." Trowa sighed as he grabbed the sides of his head.  
  
***  
  
The next attempt was made on Colony L-4, the headquarters of Preventer. It was just across the street from the Winner family building. Like the Winner family building it was purely white, but to add some security for the building the name Preventer wasn't plastered across the building nor was it mentioned on the building room index. The building was posed as an electrical and plumbing company building. Something that no one would suspect housed the Preventer office.  
  
Down the street from the Preventer Headquarters one of the Horseman was rolling around the corner. The sounds of a motorbike engine whirring at its high pitch and echoing from the buildings around it. Its sound annoyed the people walking on the streets past the hidden Preventer HQ and the Winner building. The motorcycle rider was dressed in black jumpsuit as well as a black helmet, gloves and boots. Luther, being dressed in black, rode his bike to the side of the Preventer HQ. Except being dressed in black did make him stick out a little too much. At least his helmet gave him some anonymity from the passers by.  
  
This time his attempt wouldn't fail, or so he kept telling himself. He reached into his pocket, still keeping his hand on the steering bar; he reached for a small pink make up compact. It may have looked like a make- up compact but this was a bomb, the very same kind of bomb that Lady Une used to kill the Former vice Foreign Minister Dorlin.  
  
Luther opened it and closed it, as he sped past the Preventer headquarters. He gathered the strength in his arm and he threw the compact at the third floor window. He watched it smash through the glass and the bomb only had a 10-second fuse.  
  
Inside Lady Une's office, Lady Une sat with her back to the window. She had no idea of what was about to happen. She still had the false security that the enemy didn't know where the Preventer building was located. Just then she heard the window break open and her gaze sharply turned and she found the pink compact. She remembered back to that day when Relena Darlin brought that make up box back to her unknowing that Lady Une was going to kill the Vice Foreign Minister, Relena's foster father. When the make up box made a perfect landing on Lady Une's desk, she scrambled to her feet. She dashed to the door and as she opened it the compact exploded.  
  
In the lobby of Preventer, one of its members, Wufei Chang, saw the biker. He was in the lobby with Miss Noin going over the reports from the mobile suit attacks on Colony L-1 and L-3. As well as what to do about them if they will ever attack again. It wasn't until he heard the explosion from above his head that he knew that something was amiss. He looked at the biker and after the explosion he saw the biker speed off out of his range of vision.  
  
"Find out what happened!" Wufei commanded to Miss Noin, "I'm going after the biker."  
  
Miss Noin knew what Wufei was going to do; she dashed to the elevator while Wufei jumped out to the street and to his motorbike. Wufei didn't even bother stepping onto the bike he jumped on its seat. He shoved his foot hard down, the bike whirred up to its start and he set out after the attacker. With his quick wits about him he dodged the pedestrians as well as the cars on the street. All the while he never too his eye off of the rider in black that was speeding up ahead of him. After a few turns, Wufei lost track of where he was even located within the Colony. All he needed was to catch the rider and bring him to justice.  
  
Ahead, Luther went into his jumpsuit and pulled out his handgun. Making sure that ahead of him there were no obstructions he aimed the gun at the boy chasing him. He squeezed off a few shots but they only grazed Wufei who was closing up behind him.  
  
Wufei felt one of the bullets graze his cheek, he felt it like a scratch or rather like a paper cut on his face. He ignored the pain and kept his sights on the rider ahead of him. The two had kept up this chase for what must have been several minutes. Until Luther crashed his bike ahead of Wufei, except he intended it so that way Wufei would have to stop. Not only that but he crashed in front of Wufei so that the Gundam pilot would have to go around him and do a U-turn to come after the Horsemen. By the time Wufei had made the course correction Luther was already ahead of him for a split second and then vanished into an alley.  
  
As quickly as he could, Wufei headed to that very same alley and by the time he reached it the rider in black was gone.  
  
"Damn it!" Wufei cursed as he struck the brick wall next to him.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
To be continued. 


	3. Forgotten Memories

Gundam Wing:  
  
  
  
  
  
The Four Gundams of the Apocalypse  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 3: Forgotten Memories  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
*All copyrights belong to their respective owners.  
  
  
  
  
  
At a hospital on Colony L-4, Lady Une was undergoing intensive surgery. While she was under the knife, the Gundams were waiting for her to come out of emergency surgery as well as their partner. The Gundam who was missing in action, Trowa Barton, some of the Gundam sat, like Quatre and Duo, but Heero and Wufei preferred to stand in this time. Wufei was especially annoyed since the attacker was within his grasp and he got away. Wufei was grinding his teeth so hard that the nearby Miss Noin and Sally Po could hear it. Miss Noin had a hard time trying to cope with this since she was the first one to see Lady Une after she had been attacked. The sight was so horrible that she tried as hard as she could to block it out. As they waited Trowa walked in with his sister Catherine at his side.  
  
"How is she?" Trowa asked  
  
"She's not so good." Quatre answered, "she's been in there for the past three hours, but we're not giving up hope for her."  
  
Trowa took a seat with Catherine at his side, Catherine and Trowa weren't on the best of terms. Especially since Catherine saw that woman in the red dress leaving his caravan. Still in this time of need, Catherine was willing to support Trowa in anyway she could, yet there was something nagging. It was that woman in red, Catherine had the distinct feeling that she had seen her before, but where? It was like seeing someone familiar in a restaurant but not knowing his or her name and as long as she could mull over this it will tear Catherine apart trying to find that answer. Catherine kept her sights on Trowa hoping that the answer will come to her.  
  
  
  
The gaze of Catherine at Trowa caught the attention of Duo. He looked over at the two. Catherine never took her eyes off of Trowa even for a second. Trowa was in more desperate need than anyone.  
  
"Hey, Trowa?" Duo called, "Is something wrong?"  
  
Trowa turned his head up slowly to Duo and looked straight at him, "I can't remember." He said  
  
"Can't remember what?" Duo asked  
  
"Last night."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"He means," Catherine stepped in, "that he doesn't remember what happened last night. It's like someone erased them."  
  
Duo then asked Catherine the questions, "what do you know about last night?" He asked  
  
"I saw a woman," Catherine reported, "Trowa took her into his trailer and then a few hours later she left. The next day Trowa says he doesn't remember."  
  
Duo reached into his pocket and searched it for a moment. Then he brought out his hand, entangled in his fingers was a long silver chain and at the end of it was a silver cross. He walked over to Trowa and began to swing the silver cross in front of his eyes. The other Gundams watched as Duo performed his tricks for Trowa. Normally this is something that Duo wouldn't normally do, but for some gut reason he felt that the answer to this craziness lies in Trowa's missing memories. Trowa on the other hand wouldn't allow himself to do anything like this but he also wanted to know the answers for himself. He couldn't stand having that gap in his mind, it was like a popcorn kernel in his teeth that he couldn't pick out.  
  
"Trowa," Duo said calmly, "watch the cross swing."  
  
Trowa watched the cross, his green eyes swinging like the cross from left to right and right to left. It sent its shinning surface into Trowa's eyes and he suddenly was loosing himself in the brilliance of the light.  
  
"Trowa" Duo called, "Listen to my voice. Go back in your mind remember last night."  
  
"There was a woman in red." Trowa said, "she was there at the show. She was staring at me."  
  
Trowa was receptive to Duo's questions, his eyes wide, continuing to watch the cross swing in his zombie-like stare.  
  
"What happened outside your trailer that night?" Duo asked allowing the cross to swing every further back and forth in his hand.  
  
"I went outside to breathe the air." Trowa remembered, "I couldn't get my mind off of that woman in the audience. She kept staring at me. I saw her coming towards me, I didn't approach her, but she approached me."  
  
All of the Gundam pilots never made a sound, they didn't want to disturb whatever it was that Duo was doing. They had that much respect even though they had their doubts about whether if this whole trick was going to work at all.  
  
"What did she do next?" Duo asked still swinging the cross.  
  
"She blew something in my face." Trowa's eyes still fixed on the cross, remembering piece by piece of what happened. "Suddenly I fell in love with her. I didn't know her but I felt everything in my body beating for her. I brought her into my trailer and we made love so passionately that the trailer was shaking."  
  
"Then what happened after that?"  
  
Trowa's eyes then looked glazed over as if he was drunk but they were still open and watching the cross swing back and forth, "She asked me where the Preventer headquarters was. I knew that I shouldn't have told her but something made me. Then she made me forget everything."  
  
"What was her name?"  
  
"Lucia Lynn."  
  
Duo stopped swinging the cross but Trowa's eyes were still wide and moving back and forth from left to right. Duo then brought up his left fist and snapped his fingers. Trowa's eyes immediately turned calm again as if the whole few minutes of Trowa remembering had gone away. Except the memories had now leaked over into Trowa and he now realized what he had done.  
  
"Oh, God." He whispered, "I'm sorry everyone. I gave away the location of Preventer." He buried his face in his hands as if he was about to weep, "Damn it! How could this happen to me?"  
  
Catherine laid her hand on Trowa's shoulder. She had always been there for Trowa in these times of need. With her hand she moved closer to Trowa and hugged him, laying her head on his shoulder.  
  
"It's alright, Trowa." She said, "It wasn't your fault."  
  
"Because of me," Trowa wept, "Lady Une is now near death." Suddenly he felt very odd, it was as if just in him the air conditioning had been turned to full blast, "It feels so cold. I'm so cold."  
  
Catherine hugged Trowa even tighter, "It's alright Trowa. It wasn't your fault."  
  
As Catherine consulted the despairing Trowa, Duo put his cross back in his pocket, "Now we have a name."  
  
"That name, Lucia Lynn." Miss Noin cupped her chin, "It sounds very, very familiar. I swear I heard it before or something close to it."  
  
"I agree." Sally nodded, "I've heard that name somewhere before too. But I can't place it."  
  
Catherine still held onto Trowa trying to get him through his small guilt trip that he has put himself through. With her head on Trowa's bruiting shoulder, she looked to one of the small coffee tables in the waiting room. Of the tables had magazines on it, the very old issues that nearly everyone who ever came into this waiting room has read. The pile was small with only three or four magazines stacked upon one another. The top magazine caught Catherine's attention. It was an issue of a fashion magazine with a flashy and "hip" name. She strained her eyes and looked closer at it. The woman on the cover had short blonde hair, green eyes and was wearing a short skimpy black dress.  
  
The hair may have been different but the neurons in Catherine's brain started to snap and spark. The got up and walked away from the bruiting Trowa and over to the Magazine, she picked it up as if it was some kind of lost treasure and looked at the front picture very carefully. In her mind's eye she imagined the woman with long brunet hair, the red cloak and beret. It was she, Catherine suddenly remembered this issue. She looked at the text plastered all over the front so much that it covered most of the cover girls body. There she saw the name, "Ginger Lynn".  
  
"It's her." She whispered, then she shouted, "IT'S HER!"  
  
All eyes turned to Catherine; she was holding a magazine like a zealot holding their sacred text. She made the one-meter dash back to Trowa and shoved the magazine in front of Trowa. She knew what the answer was but she desperately needed to hear it from Trowa's lips.  
  
"Is this her?" she asked Trowa. She then got down on her knees so that she could see Trowa's face when he gave his answer. She watched as Trowa's eyes grew bigger and bigger as he looked at the front cover. Trowa's face turned to Catherine who waited with agitated anticipation for his answer.  
  
Trowa opened his mouth to tell his answer, "Yes." He said  
  
"Now we definitely know." Wufei commented, "But we're going to have to wait until Lady Une gets out of surgery."  
  
The Gundams waited long hours before the doctors had said that she was going to make a good recovery. However, with the leader of Preventer out of action, some more desperate actions were called up to find out who was the one to give the orders. The general consensus among the Gundam pilots as well as their supporters was that Miss Noin should be the one to command them until Lady Une can be fit to command again.  
  
A search was done on the background of the model named Ginger Lynn. From what was found out about her she was born on Earth, more specifically on the island region of Australia. Her family was very prominent, more specifically they were leaders of a political sort. So, this gave Ginger Lynn some pretty high privileges. Though while she was in college she did modeling, which is where the magazine came from, which was a very old issue by two years. According to her school files, she had graduated with several degrees in Nursing, Chemistry and Botany. After she graduated from college in the year A.C. 195 at the age of 18, she worked in the medical corps of the Alliance Military. However after the alliance collapsed she was never heard from again. Her whereabouts since A.C. 195 are unknown, until now.  
  
  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
  
  
On the moon the four Gundams of the Apocalypse were celebrating their own victory. Inside the abandoned mobile suit/mobile doll factory the raised voices echoed front and back through the facility.  
  
"Hooray!" They would shout, "the first blow is struck! Lady Une is dead! Nothing will stand in our way!"  
  
Luther got up onto his high pedestal, which was only a conveyer belt raised high above the ground. The belt that once had mobile suits and mobile dolls alike rolling down past to be sent out to meet their enemies. But that was a time long gone, now the belt served as a platform for one of the most evil of men.  
  
"Horsemen!" He called and the rest of the horsemen dropped the celebration as if choreographed to do it on cue. They stopped to hear their masters' words, "We may have won this battle but this war is far from over."  
  
Malcolm had asked the question of their plan, "Do we go to the next phase, Death?"  
  
Luther smiled like the Cheshire cat suffering from delusions of grandeur, "Yes, we are to go to Stage 2 to bring about the apocalypse!"  
  
"Apocalypse now!" The Horsemen said in unison.  
  
  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
  
  
Back on Colony L-4, a plan was being devised at the Preventer temporary headquarters, The Winner Family Mansion. Since Quatre was now head of the family, he had the authority to allow this. IN light of the new information that they had, a plan of attack had to be devised as well as figure out whom they were up against. To add onto the plan hatching they were also waiting for one more Preventer who was on his way to the mansion. The Agent Preventer Wind. This agent was known by many names, one of the most famous was the one that he used in the days of Oz and the Alliance Military. The name of Zechs Marquise, the Lightning Count, but he was also known by the name (his most true name) Milliardo Peacecraft. In this time he preferred to be called Preventer Wind since he had abandoned the names Zechs and Miliardo.  
  
Preventer Wind walked into Quatre's office seeing the faces of the Gundam Pilots as well as his love, the woman who is now leader of Preventer, Lucrezia Noin.  
  
"Preventer Wind, reporting in." He said closing the dor behind him and taking a seat.  
  
"That takes care of it." Quatre said, "We're all here. Now we know the name of one of the enemies that attacked us. Now the real problem is finding them."  
  
"With the name being a dead end in the first place," Miss Noin asserted, "finding our enemies is easier said than done."  
  
"Regardless, we still need to find them before they cause more suffering."  
  
The door to Quatre's office slammed open. The enormous boom the door made attracted the attention of everyone in the room to that single point. At that point of the doorway stood Quatre's right hand man, the leader of the Maganac Corps, Rasid. The look on his face was as if he had just been witnessed to the greatest of catastrophes. He gasped for breath still his face frozen in absolute terror.  
  
"Master." He gasped, "Quatre.turn on.the television."  
  
Quatre didn't question why, he went for the nearest TV monitor. The only one was embedded in the wood finished wall of his office. He quickly turned it on and he heard Rasid's next ominous words.  
  
"It's a declaration of war." He said  
  
Quatre kept his eyes on the screen while his ears picked up the sound. The picture was still coming through but the words sent waves through the room.  
  
"In the year A.C. 195, five Gundams came to the Earth. It was supposed to be the last sign of the apocalypse, but the messengers failed."  
  
The picture became clear and the members of Preventer saw two mobile suits. They were immediately recognizable, one suit was gray and looked like a Gundanium form of a woman. It was the Gundam Famine; next to it was a mobile suit that looked as heavily armed as the Gundam Heavyarms. It was the Gundam War.  
  
The greatest connection made was the voice that made this declaration. The voice's tone was commanding but it still belonged to a woman. A woman that Trowa Barton was supposed to forget. Unfortunately, the voice was haunting him, he knew who it was, Lucia Lynn.  
  
"Now," the voice of Lucia continued, "We shall be the ones to finish what the Gundams should have all that time ago. Apocalypse now!"  
  
  
  
  
  
* * *  
  
  
  
  
  
The day was peaceful, yet the place was unusual to Mariemea Kushrinada's eyes. It looked like a rural countryside. The green rolling hills, tall trees, warm breezes, a blue sky with white clouds over head, fields of corn, cabbages and other vegetables. In the distance were the mountains fuzzed over with the atmospheric haze. Around her she stood in a wheat field that was still green that hadn't turned its seasoned brown color. Next to the field was a road that was unpaved but was treaded upon by the numerous numbers of carts and horses that had passed over this road. Down the path it stretched into a patch of trees. The trees covered the road like a tunnel of branches, trunks and leaves intermixing with each other.  
  
Mariemea enjoyed this place, the warm breeze brushing her cheek, through her hair and over the wheat making it a sea of green, but it didn't last for very long. The blue-sky overhead turned dark with the clouds blocking the suns glorious rays. The wind that was once gentle and warm turned furious and cold. Mariemea looked into the tunnel of trees and the leaves there were blowing as if inside a tornado or like evacuating people. Inside Mariemea's heart she could hear her own heart beat starting to beat faster and faster. Something was coming and she couldn't run. She simply stood there as if her feet were planted into the ground like the wheat around her. She stood helpless to watch the horror that was coming from the tunnel of trees.  
  
The horror came, one by one they came from the tunnel of trees. Four riders were coming up the road to Mariemea. Each of the riders were dressed in black, they wore hoods that were so dark that their faces couldn't be seen, their robes tattered and flowing over the horses they rode. Each horse was black with red eyes that burned within their faces. As they rode up the beaten down path they brought darkness with them. Mariemea could feel the evil that was emanating from them. Before they came the entire world was full of color and life, but then they came and all life and color was gone. Even Mother Nature herself was afraid of these creatures.  
  
They came closer to Mariemea and she still stood there feet frozen to the ground. Her eyes wide as the riders stopped at the road beside her. She could smell the horses and they stunk with the stench of death and decay. The horses' eyes fixed on her and she could feel the cold stare of whatever ungodly eyes were under the hoods of those riders.  
  
"Mariemea." one of the riders spoke, the voice was colder than the harsh wind. It silently sent shivers through Mariemea. She still couldn't move, she couldn't run and couldn't get out. "You're angel of death awaits." The rider said slowly and coldly as it went to its side.  
  
Its hand was covered in rough and dirty steel that was scaly like a fish. The riders pulled out swords that were all rough and unpolished. Mariemea knew that it didn't matter to the riders if the swords were ugly, just as long as it was sharp. The riders, with their ugly swords out, glided off of their horses as if they were specters rather than men. They landed on the road with a clunk sounding out from their armor covered feet. They held their swords up to their hoods as if by ritual, in coming closer to Mariemea. She looked down to her feet and found bugs crawling out from under the ground as they came closer. Spiders, centipedes, worms, crept and crawled past Mariemea's feet away from the riders in black. She looked back at the riders who now held their swords like scorpion stings, the points out and coming close to Mariemea. She screamed as the riders in black drew back their swords and impaled Mariemea like a piece of meat.  
  
It started as a beautiful dream but turned to a black nightmare. She woke up in her bed back on Colony X-18999 far from the black riders of her nightmare.  
  
"It was only a dream." She whispered, "just a dream."  
  
Laying her head back against her pillow and feeling the sweat against the back of her head. Now that it was over, Mariemea felt relieved to come back to the safety of her bed.  
  
In an instant that security was shattered, a black gloved hand came over Mariemea's mouth. Her heart jumped she wanted nothing more than to scream but it was only muffled. She looked up and found whom the black gloved hand belonged to. She saw a great figure standing over her, its black robes flowing down over the bed, and its great hood covered its face only exposing a metallic mask. The mask looked like a skull, a human skull. Mariemea tried to scream but the hand over her mouth countered it.  
  
  
  
"Sweet dreams," a metallic sadistic voice said, "Mariemea Kushrinada."  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
To be continued. 


	4. Apocalypse Now!

Gundam Wing:  
  
The Four Gundams of the Apocalypse  
  
Chapter 4: Apocalypse Now!  
  
*All copyrights belong to their respective owners. * * *  
  
The Gundams had been dispatched to Colony L-2. The threat had been established and now was the time to neutralize it. The distance between Colony L-4 and L-2 was great, but for the safety of the colony it had to be covered in the least amount of time. Even if time was short the Gundams were ready to fight to their deaths. The threat that the unknown Gundams made was that they would release a chemical agent into the colony air ducts. The threat was only made halfway, they did announce what they were going to do, but they didn't make any demands. This was the only part that made most of the Gundam pilots very suspicious of what the true intentions are.  
  
Still, even with these suspicions hanging over head the duty had to be carried out for the colonists.  
  
The Gundams had finally arrived at Colony L-2 keeping a watch on what the unknown Gundams were doing. Four of the Gundams were present in space but one was missing. For the plan had to go smoothly and without a single hitch. Quatre took the first step, he opened a channel to the Colony.  
  
"Unknown Gundam," He called. "This is Quatre Raberba Winner of Preventer, pilot of Gundam Sandrock. What are your demands?"  
  
The response was instant.  
  
"I am Famine," a woman's voice came back, "I am one of the Four Gundams of the Apocalypse. I demand that you sit back and watch the colonists here on L-2 die."  
  
"I can't accept those terms." Quatre responded  
  
"You'll have to, Preventer Gundam."  
  
Inside the colony, The Gundams Famine and War stood still outside the colony hall. Below at their feet the colonists were scrambling. Each running in different directions, pushing to get through, and falling over one another. It was true Pandemonium.  
  
Up in the cockpits of War and Famine, they waited. Each of them was patient and calm. Their hands on the controls ready to move with any kind of lighting speed they had. Though the pilot of the Gundam War was growing impatient. Then again, War was always the paranoid one, the kind of person who would continually look over his shoulder to make sure if he wasn't being followed.  
  
His patience in the cockpit was growing thin with each passing moment. Then again, War did have an itchy trigger finger with good reason since he was sitting on the most heavily armed mobile suit known to humans.  
  
Not even the Gundam Heavyarms was this heavily armed and War was itching to try it.  
  
"How long will Death have us sit here?" He asked out loud in annoyance.  
  
Famine answered, "You know our mission, we wait."  
  
War gritted his teeth even more annoyed with such an unsatisfactory answer. He lay back in the pilots' seat, taking his hands away from the controls. He figured that he could relax his trigger finger or maybe it was because he was utterly and completely bored with waiting. As he stewed in his frustration and boredom he had to say something.  
  
"I really would like to get this over with." He said  
  
"I don't think so!" A cocky young voice called out.  
  
Famine and War turned around and there floating in mid-air with its Beam Scythe out was the Gundam DeathScythe Hell. The beam scythe was right in between Famine and War, it wanted to make sure that whoever moved first would be sliced in half like fresh produce at a Gallagher show. Both Famine and War were shocked and surprised when they found the DeathScythe right behind them and they never saw it coming. Death warned both of them about the DeathScythe in that it was very sneaky and its pilot is even more so. They had failed their leader, then again maybe they hadn't.  
  
"Alright, folks." Duo called out from DeathScythe, "either you back down right now or you're gonna die!"  
  
"I don't think so." Famine smiled cat-like, she reached forward to her controls and pulled its trigger. Outside the Gundam Famine had its Long Shield pointed downward, the shield looked almost like the Wing Zero's buster shield but more sleek in its design. When Famine pulled that trigger in the cockpit a gas began to spurt out of the shield. Their threat was real, they were releasing the chemical agent. Below at the Gundam Famine's feet the people began to panic even further, they began to run and dash around each other like they were cattle on a stampede.  
  
Duo in the DeathScythe felt his heart nearly jump out of his chest as he watched the chemical agent spurting out of the shield. This was the greatest mistake that Duo Maxwell, pilot of the Gundam DeathScythe Hell would ever make. He had let his guard down.  
  
In an instant he was knocked off his feet, Duo looked back up and found that the Gundam Famine had extended a heat rod from its right forearm. It gave him flashbacks to the Gundam Epyon. He could even see the Epyon being super imposed onto the Gundam Famine as he looked up at it with wide surprise. He expected to be thrown against the ceiling as Gundam Famine had DeathScythe by the leg in its heat rod. Then it did something that Duo never expected, he saw sparks coming from the heat rod. Then the unexpected became fear as Duo made the connection that those sparks on the heat rod were part of its weapon design, electrical shock. It reached the cockpit, the screens were disrupted, blue sparks of electricity arched from on side of the cockpit to the other and Duo felt the shock.  
  
"AHHHH!" He screamed as the current ran through him like water in a river. It was painful to every nerve ending that he had in his body. He couldn't block out that kind of pain like Heero could. The only thing that he could do was scream, scream, and then scream some more.  
  
"That's enough Famine!" War shouted, "We have what we came for."  
  
Famine withdrew her heat rod from the Gundam DeathScythe, it recoiled back into her forearm like a retractable plug for a vacuum. Famine was slightly annoyed with War, and she was rather surprised since it was War who was bored to death of being on this colony waiting for their objective to be done. Famine did have to put aside her annoyance and look at the larger picture of the mission, this part was done, and there was no need to torture DeathScythe any further.  
  
"Very well, let's proceed to Colony X-18999." Famine stated, "Apocalypse now."  
  
"Apocalypse now!" War repeated.  
  
In an instant as if by magic, the Gundams War and Famine were gone. Inside the DeathScythe Duo regained himself and brought his mobile suit back up to its feet.  
  
Knowing what the Gundam Famine did he couldn't bear to look and see what it had done, but he had to. There in front of him was the most unlikely of sights, the people were still alive. The gas was still there, it was like a yellow dust cloud inside this space colony. What was going on? Duo asked himself. Even with the yellow gaseous cloud still lingering no one was hurt, the people were still running around but no one was dying. Why?  
  
Duo opened the cockpit door and came out of his mobile suit. The next breath of air he took in was a sweet smell, it smelled like.like vanilla. Vanilla gas, that's all it was, it was a hoax, but why? Duo scratched his head thinking about why this was going on and what for. In his mental search for answers he kept looking down at the colony citizens who were in just as much confusion as he was. Then he remembered something while he was trying to recover from that electrical shock the Gundam Famine gave him. Writhing in his cockpit in pain, Duo overheard them talking about Colony X-18999.  
  
"X-18999" Duo realized. "That's where they're heading."  
  
Beep! Beep!  
  
A call was coming inside the cockpit, Duo jumped back into the pilots seat still feeling the searing pain in his nerves. He opened the COM channel still feeling every muscle, every nerve and even his hair was aching. The screens came back up and there in the screen he saw Quatre's face.  
  
"Duo, the unknown Gundams are leaving the colony." He stated, "We're going to follow them."  
  
"I hear you Quatre," Duo smiled, "I'm on my way."  
  
* * *  
  
On colony X-18999, deep within its bowels among the generators, pipes, wires and other unknown parts lay the Gundams Conquest and Death. The two stood side by side like demons of the shadows. Under the few laps of this dark dank place, the pilots of Conquest and Death met to discuss the next phases as well as what had happened.  
  
Conquest was kneeling to Death who stood looking down at his little hostage, the young girl, Mariemea Kushrinada who was tied to a chair, gagged and asleep under the overhead lamp. She looked like a rag doll in some sort of sick version of playing house, the young girl as the object of someone's abuse, but she was to be the key in the plans of the Horsemen. Death came closer to her, extending out his clawed glove covered hand like a fairy tale monster. He reached to a small trinket around her neck; it was a golden cross that sparkled against Death's black glove. From under the skull-like mask, Death's eyes grew wide and hungry like looking at sweet buns in a bakers display case. He even licked his lips under the mask thinking about what could be done, but his ecstasy was interrupted.  
  
"Death." Conquest called, "I have just received word from Famine and War."  
  
Death had allowed the golden cross to drop against Mariemea's chest as he backed up into the darkness with Conquest, "What do they have to report?" He asked.  
  
"They have come into contact with the Gundam DeathScythe." Conquest reported,  
  
"They have fled Colony L-2 and are heading this way. They will be here within the next hour. Our plan is proceeding as we had planned Death, we already have opened two of the seals. Soon we will have opened all seven seals."  
  
"Yes, Conquest." Death said seductively as he moved towards his Gundam Death,  
  
"Remember, when they get here you may do with the others as you like, but DeathScythe is mine."  
  
Conquest was still kneeling to his master, even though his master was somewhere in the dark like a childhood monster. Yet there was something about what he said, about the Gundam DeathScythe, they had already come into contact with it. Conquest was confused, "But why?" He asked  
  
"This is a matter of pride, Conquest." Death explained, "Now, have we begun the next part of the operation?"  
  
"Yes, the colony is moving."  
  
In the dark, under the cover of the cloak and mask, Conquest didn't see his masters' stern face. He looked up at the Gundam Death with thinned eyes, he was planning something in his own twisted little mind. It was a look of contempt, a look of defiance that Death had, and he wanted revenge. If Death had studied Chinese philosophy it would have said that when seeking vengeance, dig two graves. In Death's mind, he only wanted to dig one grave.  
  
* * *  
  
Back in space, the chase still went on between the Gundams of Preventer and the Gundams of the Apocalypse. The Gundams engines burned in the cold space like stars but no matter how hard they burned they couldn't keep up with the enemy Gundams.  
  
Not even the expeditious Wing Zero could keep up with them, it was as if those mobile suits were possessed by the devil himself, that the pilot sold their souls to become faster than the Gundams themselves. The taunting images of the enemy Gundams were only small figures in the screens of the Preventer Gundams. It annoyed all of them to have the enemy flaunt their speed, like watching a rich kid flaunt his wealth by counting his money in plain sight.  
  
Heero in his frustration gritted his teeth watching the engines burn in front of him and not being able to catch up. The anger was from the knowledge in thinking that someone could be better than he could.  
  
It's true that Heero is a proud person, but he wasn't as out spoken about it as Wufei. Yet, the undeniable pride was still there in Heero, sitting silently and quietly as Heero himself.  
  
At last Colony X-18999 was within view of the Gundam scopes. As the colony came within distance of the Preventers they watch the Horsemen Gundams disappear into the colony. They entered through one of the doors open to space and from that very same door four Gundam came out. They jetted out like water skiers with the wakes of water trailing behind them. There were Gundams Death, Famine, War and Conquest.  
  
Unbeknownst to the Preventer Gundams, the Horsemen suits were concocting their own devious scheme. Death called out to his minions.  
  
"Remember" He reminded, "the other Gundams are yours, but DeathScythe is mine."  
  
"Understood." The other Horsemen Gundams acknowledged.  
  
The battle had begun.  
  
The first two to engage in the fight was the DeathScythe Hell and the Gundam Death.  
  
From the point of view of the others it looked as if both Gundams had vanished. Except both sides knew that neither Gundam vanished, they simply used their active cloak.  
  
With that in mind the fight with the other Gundam continued. Both sides cam at each other with the deadliest of force. That was for the exception of the Wing Zero, it zoomed past the other Gundams like a high-speed car blowing past tumbleweeds on a desert road. It passed the Horsemen Gundams and headed toward the colony.  
  
As a Preventer Officer, Heero's first rule was the safety of the people before fighting the enemy. He knew for a fact that the colony was falling to the Earth with how far from its original position it was moving.  
  
With that fact Heero knew the consequences if the colony were to fall to Earth. It would be like an enormous nuclear bomb and once it hit it would throw so much dust into the atmosphere that the sunrays wouldn't shine. The earth would become cold, it would be thrown into another ice age. The thought of how many people would die as a result of this act of lunacy set Heero to stop it at once.  
  
Except the Horsemen Gundams had other plans. The one who acted was the Gundam War. He made a sharp turn around and opened fire from the twin Vulcans installed in the Gundams head. At first the bullets missed the dodging Wing Zero, then the bullets hit their mark but did no damage to the Wing Zero.  
  
"Damn." War cursed to himself, "I knew I should have loaded the uranium bullets."  
  
Heero overheard War cursing himself but came to a series of thoughts. Before, these Gundams hadn't failed to do their missions but War did something that made Heero scratch his head. One of the Horsemen Gundams, Gundam War had made a mistake.  
  
Still, he couldn't allow his mind to be distracted; there was a colony that needed to be saved. Heero landed the Wing Zero in the Colony and proceeded to do his job.  
  
Meanwhile back in space the battle raged.  
  
The invisible DeathScythe and Death firing unseen shots and having unheard explosions.  
  
Quatre immediately went after War who was firing at Heero. He brought about the Gundam sized Uzi and fired as many rounds as he could at War. This was the only advantage that Sandrock had over War: it's maneuverability. With all the amounts of weapons Gundam War had, it was slowed down in conventional combat. War may have had the advantage between Colony L-2 and X-18999 but in battle Sandrock had the upper hand.  
  
Even with speed on his side War still had two other advantages on its side: Its weapons and armor. The bullets Quatre fired only bounced off of Wars armor. Quatre threw away the Gundam-sized Uzi and took out his curved swords and both blades burned like metal out of a fire. Quatre brought them down together as if he was going to do in the Gundam War like a doomed Oz mobile suit. But to Quatre's dismay a bright beam in his 30-inch view screens blocked him.  
  
Quatre saw that his blades were being held back by a beam which he found out to be the Gundam War's beam weapon. It wasn't pink like the Tallgeese it was a dark crimson, a kind of red that in a macabre way reminded Quatre of blood.  
  
Elsewhere the Gundam Nataku and the Tallgeese III were met with a good deal of resilience from the Gundam Conquest. Wufei used his dragon fangs but Conquest dodged both of them. The Tallgeese tried firing its enormous gun at the fast little suit but the Conquest was too quick for it. Both Preventers watched as the Gundam Conquest brought up its beam rifle and fired. Within fractions of a second they saw the end of the beam rifle light up like a light bulb filament trying to burn. Then the beam fired, Milliardo in the Tallgeese immediately got out of the way, but Wufei didn't act as quickly. He got out of the way of the beam but it grazed the left arm of the Nataku. The searing heat of the weapons fire seared and burnt off the paint of Nataku like paper.  
  
"You'll pay for damaging, Nataku!" Wufei vowed  
  
Conquest only mocked, "Hi! My name is.what? My name is.who? My name is.Slim Shaddy!"  
  
Last of all there was the fight between Gundam Heavyarms and Gundam Famine. Trowa shot out all his bullets and missiles. He was fighting as hard as he could against Famine, because of how he felt. HE felt betrayed, robbed and violated after what Lucia Lynn had done to him. Trowa wanted her to feel everything he had, his anger, his hate and all his sorrow. To make her suffer just as he had.  
  
At the same time that Trowa fought he felt a great sadness. For the first time in a very long time he felt sad about what happened. It was because felt loved, lobed by Lucia. It wasn't the kind of love that he had from Catherine. The kind of love that a brother and a sister could have for each other, this was different. The love Trowa felt was something only two people could have for each other and Lucia betrayed that.  
  
"Why?" He asked, "Why did you do this to me Lucia?"  
  
Only a momentary pause when Trowa desperately wanted an answer regardless of what it would be.  
  
Famine laughed, "I was just doing my job."  
  
Trowa's teeth began to grind together, his fists clenched around the controls ready to break them, and his eyes full of tears.  
  
"Just doing your job!?" He sobbed, "you selfish bitch! You will die for violating me! My anger! My hate! And all my sorrow! All for you!"  
  
Trowa fought the fiercest he had ever fought as his heart broke with his falling tears. One could say that it was as if Trowa Barton, the Silencer, had been possessed by the devil himself. Nothing mattered to him as his tears became sparkles within the cockpit of the Gundam Heavyarms.  
  
* * *  
  
As the battle grew more and more fierce outside in space, Heero was finding his way into the colony control room. As he passed through each hall to it he began to scratch at that thought again. Something was amiss to this particular situation. There were no guards, no minions to the enemy Gundams, but why?  
  
Through each hall that Heero past there were still no guards. Not a single one, it's as if the colony was abandoned. It made Heero more suspicious to something deeper to all this, but what?  
  
Suddenly, Heero felt the whole hallway shake, he knew that the colony was getting close to the Earth's atmosphere. There was no time to waste, Heero dashed to the control room. After running for who knows how long he found it. It was as empty as what he had seen of the colony, like a ghost town. Still, there was no time to loose, Heero sat at one of the computers and stopped the colony and sent it back to its original position.  
  
With the colony moving back to its place, Heero still had that feeling. It was like an assurance of taking a certain fork in the road. Heero had that exact feeling that something else was going on but it still asked the question of what. Heero didn't' want to find out he dashed out of the control room and back to his Wing Zero in the mobile suit bay.  
  
* * *  
  
Back in space the battle grew ever more fierce between the Preventer Gundams and the Horsemen Gundams; the Gundams DeathScythe against Death, Heavyarms against Famine, Sandrock against War, Nataku and Tallgeese against Conquest. The fight had turned into an all out war, with Gundams against Gundams but a new player in this dangerous game was about to make his appearance.  
  
From Colony X-18999 came a stream of light that the Preventers knew could only belong to one person.Heero Yuy. He came blazing from the colony ready to fight anyone who would come within his path.  
  
"Gundams of the Apocalypse." Heero called, "The colony is not going to drop on the Earth and I'm going to kill all of you."  
  
Heero drew closer to the raging battlefield but as he did he heard laughing.  
  
It was a kind of maniacal and sinister laugh that eerily reminded Heero of himself during Operation Meteor. The laugh lasted for nearly a minute before it annoyed Heero so much that he had to have an answer. He knew that the person laughing was Death, but why?  
  
"What the hell are you laughing about? He asked  
  
Death answered still with a chuckle, "All of you are suck fools. We have what we came for and very soon Pandora's Box will be open and the Apocalypse will soon begin!"  
  
Death continued to laugh as the Horsemen Gundams all vanished into the blackness of space. Though they did not fly out into space, they disappeared in the same quality and manner as Duo's DeathScythe. Simply melting into the blackness like an illusion, the Horsemen Gundams were gone without a single trace. All the Preventer Gundams heard was the maniacal laughter of Death.  
  
The laugh wasn't annoying like a James Bond villain, it was truly insane and the Preventers were left with even bigger questions than before. One of the biggest was, "How bad has this situation really gotten?"  
To be continued. 


End file.
